|
A New Nation |
Nova Scotia Balks |
The Northwest Territories |
Manitoba & Riel |
Federal
Provincial Relations |
British Columbia | Prince Edward
Island | The Washington
Treaty | Scandal |
Liberal Interlude |
The National Policy |
The Railroad |
Immigration |
Rebellion |
Transition
The BNA ACT divided powers between the
Federal and Provincial governments. Certain powers were
of course held back in the British Parliament but
otherwise a specific power either fell into the
jurisdiction of the Federal Government or the Provincial
Governments. The
exact nature of Federal Provincial relations was shaped
during this period as precedent for future was of
dealing with each other. The BNA act had a
notwithstanding clause built into it which allowed the
Federal Government to strike down any Provincial laws
after review. This was a powerful tool which placed the
real power with the Federal Government. This was as a
result f the recent experiences of the United States
where the civil war had ripped the country apart over
the question of States rights in the Union. The
notwithstanding clause was added to the BNA act to make
it clear that the Federal level was the superior level
of government but this quickly came under attack.
The Manitoba school question brought the
issue of disallowance by the Federal Government to the
forefront when the Manitoba Provincial government
decided to do away with Provincial backing of French
Catholic schools and once this was passed in the
Manitoba legislature, the Catholic minority in Manitoba
appealed to the Federal Government to disallow this new
law. The Federal
Conservatives, who were the party in power, realized
that it would hard for them to win on this question. If
they disallowed the legislation they would alienate the
English Protestants in Manitoba and Ontario. If they
sided with Manitoba and allowed the law to stand then
they would alienate the French Catholic's in Quebec and
Manitoba. The fragile Conservative coalition was built
on substantial support from both these groups, so rather
then make a decision which would cause them to lose
support in one area or the other, they referred the
question to the British Parliament which still held the
right to decided on these various constitutional
questions.
The British decided
that the Federal Government could disallow the
legislation but by that time the Federal election had
been held and the Conservatives had won and decided to
put a decision on hold.
Wilfred Laurier, the Liberal leader, had
decided that he would support the Manitoba legislation
in order to reassure the English Protestants that the
Liberals could represent them and hope that he could
count on the French Canadian support because he was the
first French Canadian leader of a major Federal party.
He also felt strongly that the Provinces should have the
right to make these decisions and that was how regional
rights and identities would be maintained.
The Liberals
won the next election but the position of the Federal
Government and it's ability to use the disallowance
power was weakened and the fight between the levels of
government had finished it's first round with the forces
of Federalism losing the round. |
